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Mayor Aleksandr Rogachuk said: "This is a special honour for the city, marking its 1,000th birthday.

"Brest welcomes the Flame which symbolises peace and creation, not war and destruction."

The Torch had crossed the border from Poland with motorcycle outriders The One Chapter Belarus and it was their leader Yevgeny Beyzak who carried the special safety lamp to the stage to begin the domestic Relay.

On hand to greet it was Igor Petrishenko, Deputy Prime Minister of Belarus.

"The Flame travelled thousands of kilometres through seven European countries before it reached Belarus," he said.

"We welcome it in Brest, the symbolic gate of our motherland."

Soldiers laid a wreath at Brest Fortress memorial where a few days earlier, the end of the Second World War had been commemorated.

The Flame will visit the major towns of the Brest Oblast region and will also be taken through the national park as it continues its journey towards Minsk for the European Games Opening Ceremony on June 21.

About the author

Philip Barker, a freelance journalist, has been on the editorial team of the Journal of Olympic History and is credited with having transformed the publication into one of the most respected historical publications on the history of the Olympic Games. He is also an expert on Olympic Music, a field which is not generally well known.

inside the photos

Fact of the day

At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Iranian judoka Arash Miresmaeili was disqualified for weighing in at nearly four pounds above the limit for his weight class of his under-66 kilograms match against an Israeli opponent Ehud Vaks in the first round. It was claimed Miresmaeili had gone on an eating binge to protest the International Olympic Committee's recognition of the state of Israel. Iran does not recognise the state of Israel, and Miresmaeili's actions won praise from high-ranking Iranian officials. Mohammad Khatami, the country's President at the time, was quoted as saying Miresmaili's actions would be "recorded in the history of Iranian glories". He was later awarded $125,000 by the Government - the same amount given to Olympic gold medallists.

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